Did Donald Trump issue any pardons or commutations in 2025 related to drug trafficking?
Executive summary
Donald Trump announced in late November 2025 that he intends to grant a “full and complete pardon” to former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernández, who was convicted in 2024 on U.S. drug‑trafficking and weapons charges and sentenced to 45 years in prison [1] [2]. Beyond that high‑profile announcement, public records compiled by the U.S. Justice Department and multiple news outlets document numerous pardons and commutations in 2025, but available sources do not list other specific 2025 pardons or commutations that relate directly to drug‑trafficking cases besides Hernandez [3] [4] [5].
1. Trump’s November 28, 2025 announcement: a pardon for a convicted foreign head of state
On Nov. 28, 2025, the president publicly stated he would pardon Juan Orlando Hernández, a onetime Honduran president convicted in Manhattan in March 2024 of accepting millions in bribes to protect cocaine shipments and sentenced to 45 years; major outlets — CNN, Reuters and others — reported the planned “full and complete pardon” and framed it as erasing a major U.S. narcotics conviction [1] [2] [6].
2. Why this case is unusual and politically consequential
Pardoning a foreign head of state convicted in a U.S. federal court is rare and politically loaded: reporting notes the move comes two days before Honduras’ presidential election and alongside other Trump foreign‑policy maneuvers in the region, prompting questions about timing and U.S. influence in Central American politics [7] [8] [9].
3. Broader 2025 clemency activity under Trump
Trump’s second term has seen a high volume of pardons and commutations: tracking organizations and DOJ pages indicate dozens to hundreds of clemency actions through 2025, including mass January 20, 2025, pardons tied to the Jan. 6 prosecutions and many high‑profile individual grants [10] [5] [11]. The Justice Department’s Office of the Pardon Attorney maintains a public tally for 2025 clemency grants, but its published listings emphasize January 6‑related actions and do not enumerate every category publicly in the snippets provided [3].
4. What reporting shows about other drug‑related pardons or commutations in 2025
Reporting and compilations note Trump has pardoned or commuted sentences for people tied to drug offenses in the past and early in 2025 (for example, commutations and pardons for individuals with prior drug convictions during his first term and into the second), and that he has commuted sentences for figures with drug‑related histories [12] [13]. However, the search results do not provide a clear, sourced list of 2025 clemency grants that specifically and unambiguously affected active drug‑trafficking convictions apart from the Hernández announcement; available sources do not mention other named 2025 drug‑trafficking pardons or commutations beyond those broader references [14] [13].
5. Competing perspectives in the coverage
News organizations emphasize different angles: outlets such as Reuters and AP report the pardon as a straightforward presidential clemency action removing a U.S. conviction [2] [15], while other outlets and analysts stress potential geopolitical motives and criticism — pointing to the election timing and Trump’s broader anti‑drug rhetoric that has included military strikes and “war on drugs” framing in the Caribbean [8] [7] [6]. Some coverage highlights supporters’ claims Hernández was treated “harshly and unfairly,” while prosecutors had presented evidence of a narco‑state and bribery [7] [2].
6. Legal and procedural limits worth noting
Presidential clemency applies only to federal convictions; it does not erase state charges or remove underlying public controversy. The Justice Department’s pardon office is the repository of formal records and was reporting clemency activity in 2025, but snippets show the office’s public updates have emphasized January 6‑related grants and do not substitute for a full searchable database in the material provided here [3] [16].
7. Bottom line and reporting gaps
Fact: Trump announced an intent to pardon Juan Orlando Hernández, a 2024 U.S. drug‑trafficking conviction carrying a 45‑year sentence [1] [2]. Fact: Trump’s 2025 clemency record is large and includes many controversial grants, but the present set of sources does not list other specific 2025 pardons or commutations that clearly and directly relate to federal drug‑trafficking convictions besides Hernández; available sources do not mention additional named drug‑trafficking pardons in 2025 [4] [5] [14]. For a definitive, item‑by‑item accounting of every 2025 clemency relating to drug trafficking, consult the Justice Department’s full clemency database and official proclamations beyond the snippets summarized here [3].